Umbrella rib tips



Sept. 19, 1961 H. TlBoNY 3,000,387

UMBRELLA RIB TIPS Filed Aug. 26, 1957 ATTO R N EY asma Bim United States Patent 3,000,387 UMBRELLA RIB TIPS Henry Tibony, New York, N.Y. (118 Dudley Ave., Staten Island, N.Y.) Filed Aug. 26, 1957, Ser. No. 680,093 6 Claims. (Cl. 13S-36) This invention relates to umbrella rib tips.

In the manufacture of umbrellas, it is the general practice to make the cover as a unit completely separate from the frame of the umbrella, and thereafter to attach the cover to the skeleton by a simple assembly operation. A single pattern may be used to determine the outlines for the several sections; after cutting those sections according to that pattern, the sections are stitched together to form the cover. During the stitching of the sections to form the cover, tips generally are secured in position at the ends of the seam lines at the periphery of the cover. Those positions are the ones the tips assume when the cover is mounted upon the frame of the umbrella. All that is necessary for such assembly is -to stretch the cover upon the distended frame, and seat the tips over the rib ends, whereupon the tension of the fabric serves to retain the tips, and thereby, the cover, firmly anchored to the ribs. This method of assembly simplifies attachment of the tips, and thereby of the cover, to the ribs. That simplicity also may result in too ready separation of the tips from theV rib ends.

It is an object of the invention to produce a tip for the end of a rib of an umbrella and to modify the end of such a rib so that such rib tip and the cover to which it is secured will be secured positively in position once the tip has been assembled with the rib end.

Tips for such rib ends may be made of metal, plastic, or other suitable material. Means of the nature here described are capable of use either in a tip molded from plastic, or in one made by stamping or otherwise working sheet metal. When the tip is stamped from sheet metal, the production of the holding means and of means for limiting the movement of the rib end into its assembly With the rib tip is facilitated.

It is an object of the invention to provide a tip for a rib end which can be produced by a simple and substantially continuous operation, and at low cost. When sheet metal is the raw material, a simple stamping operation upon a continuous metallic strip quickly and easily defines and forms the tip. and associates its various parts so that the tip may be assembled quickly and anchored positively to the rib end when the assembly is effected.

Other objects of the invention will be set forth hereinafter, or will be apparent from the description and the drawings, in which is illustrated an embodiment exemplifying the invention.

The invention, however, is not intended to be restricted to any particular construction, or any particular arrangement of parts, or any particular application of any such construction or arrangement of parts, or any specific method of operation or use, or any of the various details thereof, even where specifically shown and described herein, as the same may be modified in various particulars, or may be applied in many varied relations, without departing from the spirit and scope of the claimed invention, of which the exemplifying embodiment, herein shown and described, is intended only to be illustrative, and only for the purpose of complying with the requirements of the statutes for disclosure of an operative embodiment, but not to show all the various forms and modificationsin which the invention might be embodied.

On the drawings, in which the same reference characters refer to the same parts throughout, and in which is disclosed such a practical construction,

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an umbrella in which rice has been embodied a tip and rib combination with which features of the invention have been applied, the cover being broken away in part to show the manner of assembly of a rib therewith;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective View, showing a tip and a rib end constructed or modified to embody features of the invention, the parts being shown disposed substantially in the relative positions they are to assume in the assembly, the parts being illustrated to enlarged scale;

FIG. 3 is a transverse cross-sectional View, substantially on the line 3 3 of FIG. 2, but with the parts now telescoped into their assembled relation;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a blank showing one method of producing umbrella tips embodying features of the invention;

FIG. 5 is an edge elevational view of the blank shown in FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a detail sectional view to enlarged scale, showing the manner in which the flanges are rounded to protect the thread passing through the tips.

On the drawings, there is shown an umbrella 10 which may have the usual elements such as stick 12, cover 14, and ribs 16 at the ends 18 of which are disposed rib tips 20. Cover I4 may be made up of a plurality of sections 22 of fabric or like material, which may be sewed or otherwise secured together along seams 24. Sections 22 may be hemmed or otherwise stitched along edges 26 by stitching which also is passed through openings 28 in tips 20, thus serving to retain the tips mounted in a fixed relation upon cover 14. Tips 20 are constructed so that they may be slid onto ends 18 as will be described further. Tips 20 may be made by any suitable method; for instance, they may be molded from plastics, or, as here shown, they may be formed by stamping from sheet metal.

In making tips 20 by a stamping operation, a sheet metal strip 30 (FIG. 4) may be fed to a press for work by a progressive die. The first stage, shown at 32, is the piercing of four openings 28, partially shearing and extending a holding lug 34, and shearing edges 36 of the strip to form teeth 38. At the next stage 40 of the die, lug 34 is extended both in length and in the amount it is distended beyond the surface of strip 30. At this stage, blank 42 is defined by shear line 44, the blank now being held to the strip by lug 34. At the same time, the blank has been coined to form a plurality of indentations 46. This coining operation actually provides faces which are at an angle to face 48 of strip 30. The result is the production of angularly disposed surfaces 50 which terminate at the sharply angular faces or ridges 52. Pairs of such surfaces and ridges are defined for each blank, each of the pair being associated with a pair of openings 28.

In the next stage 54, the boundaries of openings 2S are extruded to form flanges 56. Then, in stage 58, the flange ends are rounded off as at 60. In stage 62, the blank is given its first working toward cylindrical form. In stage 64, the blank is given a U-shaped form. In all of these stages, the blank remains attached to the strip by means of lug 34.

Now in the last stage 66 two separate tips are produced by completing the rounding 68 of walls 70 of the individual portions of the blank to produce closed cylinder-s. At the final instance of the operation, Iteeth 38 are rounded to produce the ball or dome shaped form 72 (FIG. 3). The two separately formed cylinders are separated from lug 34, providing two completely nished tips. On the inner face 74 of the cylinder, anges 56 extend directly toward each other. Because of rounding 60 of the ends of the flanges, thread, passed through these openings 28 in securing the tips to the cover, is protected against being cut by the sharp edges of the sheared metal. An unbroken area 76 is left between flanges 56 andthe first of the ridges 52.

Rib end V18 is here considered as to the structure usually provided where the rib is formed from channel formed metal 78. In such the end 18 may be worked while still in at state to produce indentations 80 adjacent end 82 so as to produce angularly disposed surfaces 841-Y and sharply angular faces 86. Thereafter, the metal may be rolled to form the U-shaped channel form S8 as well as to roll end 18 into its cylindrical form. In such case, surfaces`84 and faces 86 will be disposed on outer face 90 of this cylinder to be in position to cooperate with surfaces 50 and ridges 52 on the inner face 74 of the tip. in positioning surfaces 84 and faces 86, an unbroken section 92 is provided between the last ridge and the extreme end 82 of the rib.

After tips 20 have been sewed to cover 14 by passing thread through openings 28, the tips are held loosely at the edges of the cover, and the cover is then stretched over the distended ribs. When this operation is completed, the tips are forced onto rib ends 18. Now, when rib end 18 is inserted into the bore of tip 26, end 82 comes into abutment with anges 56, unbroken area 76 and unbroken section 92 come into association, and surfaces 50 and 84 are brought into relation. At that time, faces 86 snap behind faces 52, and thus lock the tip and the rib end together against separation without the application of tearing stresses against engaged faces 52 and S6.

Thus a rm and secure association arises from this method of forming rib end and rib tip, and the assembly of the parts is facilitated so that the rib tip may be held in place upon the cover until the assembly is effected, and once the assembly of cover and ribs is effected, the parts may not be separated accidentally, as they are held positively associated during all the manipulations of opening and closing the umbrella, and even when the tension on the cover is released when the umbrella is closed.

Many other changes could be effected in the particular constructions, and in the methods of use and construction, and in specific details thereof, hereinbefore set forth, without substantially departing from the invention intended to be defined herein, the specific description being merely an embodiment capable of illustrating certain principles of the invention.

What is claimed as new and useful is:

1. The combination of an umbrella rib, and a tip for the rib, the tip comprising a tubular member formed by producing a plurality of ridges in and a pair of openings extending through an otherwise at piece of material, the openings being bounded by slight projections from the surface of the piece, the piece being rolled into tubular form with one end closed and the other end open, the ridges forming ledges on the inside face of the bore of the tubular form and the openings being disposed in opposed relation when the piece is in the tubular form, each ledge being defined by a small wall section tapering toward the closed end and a narrow face at a sharp angle with the wall section, the projections extending into the bore, the rib having a plurality of ledges adjacent its end and complementary to the bore ledges, the ledges being resiliently interlocked by pushing the rib end into the bore, and the projections providing means to limit movement of the rib end into the bore.

2. The combination of an umbrella rib, and a tip for the rib, the tip comprising a tubular member formed by producing a plurality of ridges in and a pair of openings extending through an otherwise at piece of material, the openings being bounded by slight projections from the surface of the piece, the piece being rolled into tubular form with one end closed and the other end open, the ridges forming ledges on the inside face of the bore of the tubular form and the openings being disposed in opposed relation when the piece is in the tubular form, the openings being spaced from both ends of the tubular member and the ledges being spaced from the openings and being between the openings and the open end, each ledge being dened by a small wall section tapering toward the closed end and a narrow face at a sharp angle with the wall section, the projections extending into the bore, the rib having a plurality of ledges adjacent its end and complementary to the bore ledges, the ledges being resiliently interlocked by pushing the rib end into the bore and the projections providing means to limit movement of the rib end into the bore.

3. The combination of an umbrella rib, and a tip for the trib, the tip comprising a tubular member formed by producing a plurality of ridges in and a pair of openings extending through an otherwise flat piece of material, the openings being bounded by slight projectionsV from the surface of the piece, the piece being rolled into tubular form with one end closed and the other end open, the ridges forming ledges on the inside face of the bore of the tubular form and the openings being disposed in opposed relation when the piece is in the tubular form, the openings being spaced from both ends of the tubular member and the ledges being spaced from the openings to provide a smooth wall face for the wall face of the bore between the openings and the ledges, the ledges being between the openings and the open end, each ledge being defined by a small wall section tapering toward the closed end and a narrow face at a sharp angle with the wall section, the projections extending into the bore, the rib having a plurality of ledges adjacent its end and complementary to the bore ledges, a smooth outer face between the ledges on the rib and the rib end, the ledges being resiliently interlocked and the smooth wall face and the smooth outer face cooperating in interiitting relation and the rib end engaging the projections to limit movement of the rib end on pushing the rib end into the bore.

4. A tip for an umbrella rib, comprising a shell having a tubular portion, one end portion of the tubular portion being infolded to form a closed end and the other end portion of the tubular portion being open, the bore of the tubular portion having a plurality of ledges on its Walls, each ledge extending substantially entirely around the walls of the bore and being defined by a small wall section tapering toward the closed end and a narrow face at a sharp angle with the wall section, the wall of the tubular portion having perforation forming means for defining a passage through the wall into the bore, the ledges being positioned between the perforation forming means and the open end portion of the tubular portion, said perforation forming means extending inwardly from said wall into the bore at the passage to produce a stop for limiting movement of a rib into the bore.

5. The combination of an umbrella rib, and a tip for the rib, the tip comprising a split substantially resilient tubular shell, one end of the shell being infolded to form a closed end for the shell, the shell forming a bore open at one end, the walls of the bore having a plurality of ledges, each ledge extending for a substantial distance along the Walls of the bore and toward the closed end and a narrow face at a sharp angle with the wall section, the shell having an opening therethrough into the bore, a rib stop extending inwardly from the wall of the bore at the opening, and a plurality of ledges on the rib adjacent its end, and extending substantially continuously around the end and complementary to the bore ledges, the ledges resiliently interlocking on intertting the rib in the bore, the extent of the rib end into the bore being limited by said rib stop.

6. The combination of an umbrella rib, and a tip for the rib, the tip comprising a split substantially resilient tubular shell, one end of the shell being infolded to form a closed end for the shell, the shell forming a bore open at one end, the walls of the bore having a plurality of ledges, each ledge extending for a substantial distance along the walls of thel bore and being denned by a small wall section tapering toward the closed end and a narrow face at a sharp angle with the wall section, the shell having a pair of opposed openings therethrough into the bore, at least one of the openings having a rib stop extending inwardly from the Wall into the bore and forming a boundary for the opening, and a plurality of ledges on the rib adjacent its end and complementary to the bore ledges, the ledges resiliently interlocking on intertting the rib into the bore, the extent of the rib end into the bore being limited by said rib stop.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNTTED STATES PATENTS 755,713 Shanahan Mar. 29, 1904 6 Schweinert et al. Apr. 30, 1907 Wurster Oct. 21, 1911 Brookshire June 27, 1916 Goldberg May 15, 1928 Cassady June 12, 1934 Morton Feb. 17, 1948 Malin Mar. 29, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS Sweden Apr. 7, 1915 France May 14, 1956 

